USD says fighting in NHL is 'calculated'

New York Rangers' Sean Avery (16) draws blood as he fights with New York Islanders' Micheal Haley (59) during the third period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, March 31, 2011, in Uniondale, N.Y.
AP-Kathy Kmonicek

New York Rangers' Sean Avery (16) draws blood as he fights with New York Islanders' Micheal Haley (59) during the third period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, March 31, 2011, in Uniondale, N.Y.

A new study by University of San Diego psychologist Nadav Goldschmied says that most of the fighting in the National Hockey League is calculated violence that's strategically done in the early parts of a game. The study, published in the journal Sports Health, also says that fighting is more prevalent during pre-season games, and that the NHL could greatly reduce violence if it assessed more penalties.

Goldschmied's findings are based on a highly-detailed review of the 2010-11 NHL season, and a broader analysis of data from the past 10 NHL seasons.

"The converging evidence suggests that players take into account the penalties associated with fighting and are less likely to engage in violence when the stakes are high, such as at the end of a game or a season," Goldschmied says the study. "This implies, in turn, that major acts of aggression in the league are more likely to be calculated rather than impulsive. The findings suggest that a more punitive system should diminish fighting behavior markedly."

These findings run against previous findings demonstrating that hostility was intensified with a prolonged competition duration. The magnitude of the present effects suggests that fighting in the NHL is largely premeditated and deliberate behavior rather than underlined by 'hot' out-of-control bursts of violence. These findings stand in stark contrast to past research, which argued that 'many sports infractions take place during the heat of competition and may be accidental or retaliatory in nature rather than planned in advance.

The results of longitudinal or cross-game analyses also suggest that the players in the league do not treat each game as a new and distinct experience but keep a detailed account of past encounters with rivals and tend to settle the 'fighting' score early in the next game. This trend is also in line with what is commonly known in the NHL as the 'free pass.' This norm makes it permissible for enforcers, who often play injured due to previous fighting instances, to decline a challenge to fight. However, the courtesy is usually extended only until the next game, when the fighting score is usually settled early on.